HS BASEBALL INSIDER: 2-5A coaches face pitching questions

Midland High boys baseball head coach Barry Russell talks to his team during the game against Abilene High on Tuesday at Zachery Field. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Midland High boys baseball head coach Barry Russell talks to his team during the game against Abilene High on Tuesday at Zachery Field. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Photo: JAMES DURBIN

Photo: JAMES DURBIN

Image
1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Midland High boys baseball head coach Barry Russell talks to his team during the game against Abilene High on Tuesday at Zachery Field. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Midland High boys baseball head coach Barry Russell talks to his team during the game against Abilene High on Tuesday at Zachery Field. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Photo: JAMES DURBIN

HS BASEBALL INSIDER: 2-5A coaches face pitching questions

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

Ask any District 2-5A baseball coach this week about pitching, and you might get nine different answers.

Some coaches are playing coy and not revealing who they will pitch as today begins a stretch of games where some teams will play five contests in eight days.

Others, though, simply just aren’t sure because one decision could affect their team for the next two weeks. The District 2-5A baseball season will begin the second half today, and it’s certainly starting with a bang.

Eight of the nine teams will play two games this weekend. Then eight teams will play again on Tuesday followed by a slate of back-to-back games for some teams next weekend.

It’s a college-type schedule, and a team’s fate in the playoff race could depend on their results over the next eight days.

Making some type of plan for pitching can be done, but then again, that plan can go away after one bad inning on Friday.

“Your plan can get shot out in the first inning, and then you’ve got to change it quick,” said Amarillo Tascosa coach Jason Patrick, whose team will play one game this weekend — today against Abilene High.

Midland High and Lee will each play two games this weekend, and both will have a split between home and away contests. The Bulldogs, who are in first place in the district at 8-0 and 14-6 overall, will face Odessa Permian (1-7 in 2-5A) at home today and then take on San Angelo Central (7-1 in 2-5A) on Saturday.

Midland High coach Barry Russell said the hardest part about figuring out who will pitch is that a decision for today could affect the team next week.

“It’s very taxing,” Russell said. “I’ve called (MHS pitching coach) Danny Neighbors three times in the last three evenings, asking, ‘What do you think now?’”

Russell said one of three hurlers — Sean Grebeck, Lance White or Jackson Lancaster — could pitch today’s game against Permian, and any one of those three could pitch in Saturday’s big game against San Angelo Central.

Russell added there could be a fourth starter thrown in there if needed over the next week.

“If you set up for this weekend, you are setting up for the next seven games which is ridiculous, but it’s the way it’s got to be,” Russell said. “We are really stuck right now on that.”

The best part for teams in playoff contention is the fact that they get a chance to throw another potential pitcher into a high pressure situation to prepare for the playoffs. Class 5A coaches love the three-game series in the playoffs, which means teams will need a third starter somewhere along the line.

“That third guy has to have some game experience,” Patrick said.

One thing is for sure, the next eight days could determine a lot about the playoff chase in District 2-5A. It could become clearer, or it could become so murky that it might take more than just the regular season to clear it up.

“Our district is so tough and it’s so good, that every game prepares you for the playoffs,” San Angelo Central coach Patrick Penry said. “Even our bottom three teams, they can beat you at any time.”

MHS BACK IN GAME MODE

It’s been more than a week since Midland High has played in an actual game, so Bulldogs coach Barry Russell said the team did some intrasquad scrimmages this week working around state-mandated testing. Russell said it also offered him an opportunity to get some other pitchers some work.

Along with Lancaster, Grebeck and White possibly pitching over the next week, he added that Gilbert Sanchez could see some time on the mound.

MHS has a one-game lead in the 2-5A standings over San Angelo Central.

LEE GETS CHANCE TO PLAY A BUNCH

Rebels coach Brian Roper said a positive for his squad over the next week is the fact that they get to play a bunch of games in a short amount of time. Lee will play five games over the next eight days, and he said that anytime a team can play games it’s a chance to get better.

Roper said he’s seeing the Rebels find their offensive groove over the last week. Lee won its first district game against Abilene Cooper last Tuesday, and then had 10 hits in a 7-4 loss to Amarillo Tascosa against two of the district’s better pitchers in Raymond Salazar and Texas Tech signee Tucker Davidson.

Lee’s team batting average has improved from .151 after two games in district play to .244 heading into this weekend.

“Those were two pretty good arms we saw Saturday,” Roper said. “There were some guys that weren’t swinging the bats early in the year and are now. We’ve seen improvement.”

Roper said that Blake Blessie will pitch today’s game against Odessa High, but he’s not sure who will take the mound for Saturday’s game against Odessa Permian.

“I haven’t even looked past (today),” Roper said.

MCS HITS THE ROAD

Midland Christian will look to stay undefeated in TAPPS 1-4A with what could be one of its toughest road trips of the season. The Mustangs (23-9, 6-0 in TAPPS 1-4A) will take on Grapevine Faith in a pair of games this weekend in the Metroplex. The Lions are also 6-0 in district.

The Mustangs haven’t had much trouble during district play so far, including sweeping a pair of games from Fort Worth Christian last weekend at Christensen Stadium.

GREENWOOD BACK TO WORK

Probably the best part about Greenwood’s 0-4 start to District 4-3A play is that it is still in the playoff race. With four teams qualifying for the playoffs out of the six-team district, if the Rangers (14-9, 0-4 in District 4-3A) can win some games in the second half of district play they could punch their playoff ticket.

Greenwood, though, hasn’t been blown out in any of its four losses, either. The Rangers lost games in extra-innings to Sweetwater and Big Spring, and took state-ranked Abilene Wylie to the seventh inning. Greenwood will finish the second half of 4-3A play at 7 p.m. today against Monahans at home.

“I talk to them every game about digging,” Greenwood coach Stephen Rodriguez said. “We’ve dug ourselves in a hole, but it’s not a hole we can’t get out of. The hole is about waist deep, but it’s not something we can’t get out of. It’s not like it’s 10 feet over our heads.”

Rodriguez said that Victor Urias or Javier Vizcaino will pitch today for the Rangers.